Christian Paradis

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Mr. Chair, improving the regulatory system for project reviews is critical to our economic recovery and future prosperity. Providing Canadians with clearer, simpler processes that offer improved environmental production is a key step in building a sustainable future, where our natural resources are developed responsibly. These changes will allow assessments to start sooner, reduce delays and duplication and deliver on the Speech from the Throne commitment to implement “simpler, clearer process that offer improved environmental production and greater certainty to industry”.

Let us be clear. This provides assurance to both the industry and the public. Thanks to the Nuclear Safety Commission and the National Energy Board, we will be able to hold public consultations as part of environmental assessments. This is currently not being done on such a wide scale. These processes will be open and transparent. I think this is good news for all Canadians.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Mr. Chair, let me just address the issue of eco-energy that my colleague raised. The government encourages energy efficiency for low income Canadians in a variety of ways, and $1 billion was included in budget 2009 to provide funds for renovation and energy retrofits for social housing up to 200,000 units. This new funding is flowing through the existing agreements administered by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation on a fifty-fifty cost share basis with provinces and territories, which are primarily responsible for providing social and low-income housing.

The government also supports low-income Canadians to energy retrofit their homes in collaboration with six provinces. Over 4,000 homes have received approved retrofit assessment and over 40 persons have been retrofitted to date, resulting in an energy savings of about $512 a year per household.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Mr. Chair, we were clear in our Speech from the Throne that we would review the entire program. That being said, it is the responsibility to ensure that the applicants will have their money. This is why we stopped taking any additional applications since March 31.

What is important is $300 million will continue to flow this year. That is a lot of money. As I said, we will review the entire suite of programs to ensure we better invest in the economy of tomorrow and how we can have strategic investments in clean energy. We are committed to that.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Mr. Chair, I will clarify what I said. At the end of 2011, we expect that half a million Canadians, half a million families, will get that program.

Mr. Chair, there have been many increases. To begin with, $160 million was set aside in budget 2007 to introduce the program.

Then our economic action plan included an additional investment of $300 million. Another $205 million was added from the clean energy fund. Finally, another $80 million has been added. This means a total investment of $745 million in this 2007 program.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Mr. Chair, the pulp and paper green transformation program is laying the groundwork for a greener, more sustainable future for Canada's pulp and paper sector. The program supports innovation and environmentally friendly investments in areas such as energy efficiency and renewable energy production. It will allow pulp and paper mills in Canada to further reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, while helping to position them as leaders in the production of renewable energy from forest biomass. The pulp and paper green transformation program will provide up to $1 billion to projects such as the one the hon. member spoke about in New Brunswick.

Further, by meeting market demands for sustainably manufactured pulp and paper products, mills like Lake Utopia will remain economically viable, enabling them to maintain jobs within the community.

The pulp and paper green transformation program complements the $100 million in budget 2010 being delivered over four years to support the development, commercialization and implementation of advanced technology in the forest sector, helping create a world-class industry able to compete in the clean energy economy of tomorrow.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Mr. Chair, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for his excellent speech, which of course I listened to very carefully.

I will be happy to respond to the hon. member's question. Our government's investment in the pulp and paper green transformation program is one of the many steps we have taken to support forestry workers in communities right now, while securing a stable and competitive sector for the future. This program allows pulp and paper mills across Canada to further reduce their environmental footprint, while establishing themselves as world leaders in renewable energy production. The example of funded projects mentioned by my colleague demonstrates that this program is delivering real results for communities, for Canadians and for the forest industry as a whole.

I would like to take this opportunity to mention that we are also building on past investments to drag the industry toward the next generation of renewable energy products and processes.

In addition to the pulp and paper green transformation program, $170 million is being provided to help our forestry industry develop new products and processes and capitalize on new market opportunities.

The $100 million recently announced in budget 2010 will help accelerate the development of new technologies to create a more diversified and stronger forest sector that offers a range of new, high volume products in the form of renewable energy. This clearly shows that our government is looking to tomorrow's markets today, working now to drive growth and ensure that Canada emerges a leader in the clean energy economy of tomorrow.

We understand the importance of Canada's forestry industry to local communities and our national economy. The record shows that right from the beginning our government has taken decisive action to assist Canada's forestry industry, while recognizing its important role in tomorrow's bio-economy.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Madam Chair, this is the problem we are facing. One does not exclude the other. The green economy, yes, but fossil fuels for transportation are here to stay for years to come.

The government is making strategic, targeted investments to reduce our environmental footprint in terms of air, water and land. This does not mean that renewable energy projects cannot be carried out in different parts of Canada. That is why we have programs and why our government has invested $10 billion since 2006 in clean energy alone.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Madam Chair, the member is capable of doing his work without asking me for help. He was elected as an MP to take care of his riding and to provide direction to the people in his riding. There is the clean energy fund, the green infrastructure fund and CED programs. There are lots of programs, but it is not up to me to go through those programs to find out what applies to projects that people in his riding bring to his constituency office.

However, if he has questions about Natural Resources Canada's programs in general, I would be happy to respond that what he should focus on right now is the fact that $100 million was set aside in the 2010 budget to produce biomass and bioproducts. We will keep a close eye on this.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Madam Chair, I believe that the main energy source that my colleague was referring to is electricity. We know that hydroelectricity is the main source of electric energy in Quebec, but when it comes to transportation, it is fossil fuels, as it is everywhere else. We know that here in Canada, transportation is responsible for 27% of all greenhouse gas emissions. That is why my colleague, the Minister of the Environment, is working with the United States to align our regulations in order to reduce our environmental footprint on that front. That is why we, at Natural Resources Canada, are putting effort and energy into ensuring that the oil sands can be exploited in such a way that the environmental impact can be reduced as much as possible, be it in relation to rehabilitating the land, recycling water or reducing greenhouse gases.

I was in Chicago, in the United States, as part of the clean energy dialogue and it was suggested that hydroelectricity is a clean energy source that should be exported to the United States. It is a major plan for a player such as Hydro-Québec and we may be able to help in that sense. We are aiming to have 90% of our electricity produced by non-emitting sources by 2020. We are presently at 75%.

Yes, Quebec plays a very important role given that the electricity produced is predominantly hydroelectricity. However, we will continue to improve in that area to encourage investment in clean energy. In Quebec, the $100 million that was announced in the 2010 budget is very good news. Our people can begin to focus on opportunities such as biomass. We have been asked about that for a long time and the Forest Products Association of Canada and Quebec's forest products association are happy about this good news.

[Business of Supply, May 31st, 2010]

Madam Chair, let me tell the House what we are doing for the industry. Economic recovery is on the horizon although it is still fragile. However, the fact remains that the price for softwood lumber has increased by 71% over the same period last year and the price of pulp has gone up by 50%.

A number of companies have started resuming operations in some plants, such as Quesnel and Crofton. Thanks to the community adjustment fund alone, labs in Quebec will receive $78 million in support for innovation and the development of new technologies in the forestry sector in areas such as bioenergy and next generation construction systems, and they will receive more than $1 million to develop a business plan and a technical design for a pilot demonstration project for the production of nanocrystalline cellulose.

In 2009, EDC provided services to more than 200 forestry businesses in Quebec, which resulted in roughly $14 billion in exports. Recently, I went to Quebec City to meet with the Quebec Forest Industry Council and announce funding for cecobois and for QWEB to help them better develop markets. Not only do we respect all the efforts being made, but we support them as well.